According to the Massachusetts Securities Division, brokerage firms that hire brokers with troubled disciplinary records are not doing a proper job of supervising them. The state, which recently released its findings from its examination of 241 broker-dealers who are registered in the state and retain an above average number of…
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has awarded another whistleblower for coming forward with information that has resulted in a successful enforcement action. This time the award amount is $3.5M. This latest award ups the total awarded by the regulator’s whistleblower program to about $135M to 36 individuals since 2012.…
Wells Fargo Fined $1M Over Supervision of Consolidated Client Reports The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority says that Wells Fargo (WFC) must pay a $1M fine for not having reasonable supervisory systems in place to oversee the generation of consolidated reports for clients. The broker-dealers that were specifically cited were Wells…
Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts William Galvin has filed charges against LPL Financial (LPLA) for its alleged failure to supervise one of its brokers. Roger Zullo is accused of bilking clients for years by selling variable annuities to retirees even though the investments were not suitable for them. In…
A Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration panel says that UBS Financial Services (UBS) must pay $18.6 million to customers Rafael Vizcarrondo and Mercedes Imbert De Jesus for their losses from investing in Puerto Rico closed-end bond funds. The two investors, both UBS clients, accused the broker-dealer of breach of…
In a unanimous decision, the US Supreme Court justices ruled that prosecutors in insider trading cases don’t always have to demonstrate that something of value was exchanged to prove that the crime happened. The court’s ruling comes two years after another decision, in United States v. Newman, raised questions regarding what comprises…
The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) has fined Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc (“Merrill Lynch”) $6.25 million and imposed a restitution penalty of $780,000 over Merrill Lynch’s inadequate supervision of its customers that employed leverage in brokerage accounts, as well as its failure to supervise the way that these customers were…
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has filed promissory note fraud charges against Onix Capital and it owner Albert Chang-Rajii. The Miami-based asset management company and Chang are accused of bilking investors who put their money into promissory notes and start-ups, as well as of falsely portraying the Chilean national…
Pacific Investment Management Company (PIMCO) has agreed to settle the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s charges accusing the firm of misleading investors about the performance of one of its exchange-traded funds and not placing an accurate value on certain fund securities. As part of the settlement, PIMCO will pay almost…
Stephen A. Cohen and SAC Capital will pay a group of Elan Corp. investors $135M to settle their insider trading case against him and the firm. The plaintiffs had contended that sustained they financial losses because of insider trading that involved Elan shares. A judge still has to approve the…